


Something About a Name

by scatter



Category: Persona 4
Genre: Community: badbadbathhouse, Gen, Meta, Subtext
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-04-12
Updated: 2011-04-12
Packaged: 2017-10-18 00:00:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/182761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scatter/pseuds/scatter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Souji comes back to Inaba, having changed his name to Yu Narukami. The group reacts. Yosuke is not okay with it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Something About a Name

**Author's Note:**

> Written for a [prompt](http://badbadbathhouse.livejournal.com/1990.html?thread=13310918#t13310918) at the Persona 4 Kink Meme: _In honour of the anime..._
> 
> _When Souji comes back to Inaba, he's had his name changed to Yu Narukami. This confuses the hell out of the group and they all have varying opinions on the topic and theories on why Souji would do something like that and Souji's just his usual, chill, enigmatic self about it._

Souji left Inaba as Souji Seta and came back—

"Sensei!"

"Partner!"

"Senpai!"

"It's good to see you all again, and before I say anything else I have to let you know that I'm Yu Narukami now. I'll give you a moment to adjust."

—still as Souji but with the new insistence that he be called a different name.

"What do you mean you changed your name?" Yosuke asked in disbelief.

"It's all official." Around their Junes table, everyone except Souji – Yu, pfft – looked confused. He sipped contently at his soda, bought by Chie. The meal in front of him was bought was Yukiko, and seated next to that was a plush doll made by Kanji. Later, Naoto had promised to buy him a snack.

They might have been a bit too eager to show him they were glad he was back.

"My parents went with me to fill out the paperwork, and while they weren't pleased about my decision to change the last name too—"

"Narukami," Chie said, brow furrowed.

"—they support my decision."

"This is stupid, partner. Your name is Souji." Yosuke crossed his arms and glared at the table. Yu Narukami. It was dumb.

"Don't be like that," Souji said soothingly around his straw, eyeing him sideways.

Yosuke directed his glare at him. Souji just looked amused.

"Is there a reason you changed it?" Rise asked. "You're not—oh my god, Senpai, are you going into show business?"

Souji shook his head.

"Oh. Boo."

"Good, because no one's going to fangirl a guy named _Yu Narukami_ ," Yosuke bit out.

"Is it because of the case?" Chie asked. "No one really knows what we did, but somehow we're still sort of famous. I think it's because we hang out with Naoto? A guy came up to me last week and asked if I was really that Chie. It was weird, I'd change my name too if I could. Or, maybe not, because what if I forgot I changed it and kept answering to Chie anyway? Ugh, how confusing."

Souji shook his head again, and Kanji scratched his nose. "I never saw nothing wrong with Souji but if Yu-senpai wants to be called Yu, what's the big deal?"

"You wouldn't see the problem," Yosuke said, and flinched when Kanji turned a blank stare at him.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Maybe Sou—uh, Yu-kun just felt it was time for a change," Yukiko said quickly. "A lot happened last year, enough to make you feel like a new person. Is that it?"

Souji tilted his head, thought it over, took a sip of soda. "No, that's not it. Good try, though."

"Oh. Well, it's a nice name."

"Thank you."

Naoto tapped her fingers against the table and regarded him seriously. "Yu-senpai, I've seen a number of cases where victims have changed their names in order to erase the marks of some past wrongdoing or escape an assailant. Given that you've come back to Inaba, a place you can easily be traced to and one I assume you would avoid if something traumatizing had happened to you here, excluding, of course, our experience with the case, I assume that's not the reason either."

"No," he said mildly, "but being in another mystery sounds fun. We should plan one."

"Yu isn't a strong enough name for a leader," Yosuke mumbled. "Doesn't inspire confidence at all."

Teddie hunched his shoulders and looking around the table with a frown. "I'm confused. Isn't Sensei still Sensei? If you're Yu now, what happened to Souji?"

Yosuke flung his hands out. "Look! Look what you're doing to Teddie, you're ruining his tiny brain and—"

"Can I change my name too? Oh! Can I be Souji now? I'd really be a hot stud then! Double the appeal, I can hardly bear the thought of how many girls I'll attract."

Yosuke let his head roll back and groaned as Teddie sparkled.

"You're kind of freaking out over this, Yosuke," Chie said. "It's weird, yeah, but aren't you blowing it out of proportion?"

Rise looked annoyed. "Seriously, Yosuke-senpai, relax. Kanji's being cool about it. _Be cool like Kanji._ "

"Actually," Souji said, bringing all the attention back to him, "out of everyone, you should have the least to complain about."

"What?" Yosuke rolled his head to look at him. "What are you talking about?"

His tone had no effect on Souji's calm expression. "When's the last time you called me Souji?"

"Like, two minutes ago when I told you Yu sounded like you wrote down the first stupid thing—"

"You didn't say that," Yukiko cut in.

"Eh, it's one of the things I was saving up then."

This didn't appear to bother Souji. "Before that," he prompted.

"Uh…" Yosuke pointed at him accusingly. "When you got off the train."

"You called me partner."

"Oh, right. When… I called you the other day and—"

"Said, 'Hey, partner,' and then complained that I hadn't immediately picked up."

"…That email last week—"

"Partner. You used it five times, once in back-to-back sentences."

Yosuke couldn’t think of anything. "Um…"

"Yosuke," Souji said gently, "you've never once called me Souji, and just because I'm Yu now—"

"I'm getting used to it," Rise chirped.

"—thanks, I'm glad. Just because I'm Yu now doesn't mean you have to stop calling me that."

Yosuke opened his mouth, closed it, and went hot when he saw everyone staring at him.

"Is this what that was about?" Chie asked.

"I don't like change," Yosuke muttered. "…And Yu's still dumb."

"It'll take a while but we'll make progress," Souji said, and pointed to a bag beneath Yosuke's seat. "Is that for me?"

"I bought it for _Souji_."

Yukiko huffed. "Really, Yosuke-kun—"

"It says partner on the tag," Souji said.

"…Just take the damn gift."

His partner smiled.


End file.
